Tevi Troy joins Romney team

Former Deputy Health and Human Services Secretary Tevi Troy has signed on as a special policy adviser to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.

The former Bush administration official signaled his support for Romney in a weekend op-ed running in McClatchy newspapers. In his column, Troy defends Romney's position on health care.

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"Romney recognizes that states are laboratories of democracy, and that the federal government cannot impose its health care will on all 50 states. He knows from experience that what is works in Massachusetts may not work in every one of the other 49 states," writes Troy, who is identified in the column's tag line as a Romney adviser. "Romney understands that we must have a plan to end this destructive experiment [the Affordable Care Act, and then get on to the business of bringing real reform to our costly and inefficient health-care system."

Troy confirmed to POLITICO that he had officially joined up with Romney's campaign, making him the latest conservative policy hand to come around to supporting the former Massachusetts governor.

In addition to serving as a senior HHS official, Troy also worked on Bush's reelection campaign and was charged with reaching out to the Jewish community for the Bush White House.